Nutro Products facts for kids
| Private fully owned subsidiary | |
| Industry | Dog and Cat care |
| Founded | 1926 as Nutro Products in Industry, California, USA |
| Headquarters | Franklin, Tennessee, US |
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Area served
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Asia, Australia, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and US |
| Products | Pet food |
| Owner | Mars, Incorporated |
The Nutro Company, Inc. is a company that makes food for dogs and cats. They also make special treats for pets, like Greenies dental treats. Nutro is part of a bigger company called Mars Incorporated. Their main office is in Franklin, Tennessee, in the United States.
Contents
How Nutro Started
Early Days and Fox Farms
The Nutro Company began in 1926. It was first started by Herben Serois. Later, in 1933, three brothers named John, Herman, and Albert Saleen owned a fox farm. They raised foxes and made their own fox food. They also created wet dog food. They sold this dog food through another company called Kal Kan.
In 1947, John Saleen took over the business by himself.
The Nutro Trademark
The name "Nutro" became an official trademark in 1936. This means the name was legally protected for the company to use. John Saleen renewed this trademark in 1952. He got the rights from Herben Serois's family.
Steve Saleen's Role
John Saleen's oldest son, Steve Saleen, joined the family business. He helped make the pet food and delivered it. Steve also worked on sales. He was important in creating new ways to market the products. He also designed how stores should look to sell more food. Steve even came up with a new Nutro logo.
Over time, Steve became very interested in cars and racing. His passion for cars grew stronger than his interest in pet food. In 1983, he started his own car company called "Saleen Autosport."
Selling the Company
John Saleen realized his children would not continue the Nutro business. So, in 1975, he sold the company to a friend named Ed Brown.
New Food Lines
In 1985, Nutro worked with Dr. Sharon Machlik. They created a new line of pet foods called Max. These foods used ingredients like chicken, lamb, and rice. Instead of traditional ads, Nutro gave stores lots of information. This information explained what dogs and cats need to eat. It also compared Nutro's ingredients to other brands. This helped stores explain why Nutro food was good.
In 2007, the company was bought by Mars, Incorporated. After this, Nutro's main office moved to Tennessee.
Nutro Products
Nutro makes different kinds of pet food. They have wet foods in cans and dry foods called kibbles in bags.
Food Lines for Pets
For cats, they have the Max Cat and Natural Choice lines. For dogs, they offer Nutro Max, Natural Choice, and Ultra lines. Each line has different flavors. They also have special foods for pets of different ages. The Ultra line was made to be a very high-quality, healthy dog food.
How Dry Food is Made
Nutro's dry foods are made using a special process called extrusion. This process shapes the food into kibbles. They use vitamin E as a natural way to keep the food fresh.
In 2006, Nutro's Adult Lamb and Rice dog food became very popular. It was the number one lamb and rice dog food in America. This success earned the company a special blue ribbon for their food.
